What tree species?

Healthy urban trees in our region need to be drought tolerant, sized right for the place they will be planted, and provide shade and other benefits. 

Consider these factors:

• How big do you want your tree to be when it is mature?
• What tree form/shape is right for your spot? (Round, weeping, spreading, or upright?)
• How about character, color, and special features? (Evergreen, deciduous, native, flowering, etc.)
• How much time do you have for maintenance?

Kate’s urban forester is working with our local wholesale nursery and local retail nurseries to offer about ten shade trees and six native trees for purchase, and the trees under consideration are listed below. A longer list of suitable trees is available in this table [need to insert table]. Other trees can be identified by browsing UFEI’s Tree Selection Guide.

Recommended Native Tree Species

Large = >50 ft, Medium= ≥30 and <50 ft, Small = ≤25 ft (planting space)
Cercis occidentalis	western redbud	very good	small
Chilopsis linearis ‘ Monhews‘	desert willow ‘Timeless Beauty’	very good	small
Heteromeles arbutifolia	toyon	very good	small
Lavatera assurgentiflora	tree mallow	good	small
Myrica californica	Pacific wax myrtle	good	small
Prunus ilicifolia ssp. Lyonii	Catalina cherry	moderate	small
Sambucus nigra ssp. caerulea	Mexican elderberry	moderate	small
Fraxinus velutina	Arizona ash	moderate	medium
Hesperocyparis (Cupressus) forbesii	Tecate cypress	very good	medium
Lyonothamnus floribundus ssp. asplenifolius	fernleaf Catalina ironwood	moderate	medium
Parkinsonia microphilla	blue palo verde	very good	medium
Prosopis glandulosa	honey mesquite	very good	medium
Pinus torreyana	Torrey pine	very good	large
Platanus racemosa.	California sycamore	moderate	large
Populus fremontii	Fremont cottonwood	moderate	large
Quercus agrifolia	coast live oak	very good	large
Quercus chrysolepis	canyon live oak	very good	large
Quercus engelmannii	Engelmann oak	very good	large
Salix gooddingii	black willow	moderate	large
Umbellularia californica	California bay laurel	good	large

Recommended Showy or Fragrant Flowering Tree Species

Scientific Name	Common Name	Drought Tolerance	Size
Cassia leptophylla	gold medallion	good	small
Cercidium x ‘ Desert Museum’	Desert Museum palo verde	very good	small
Chionanthus retusus	Chinese fringe tree	moderate	small
Handroanthus heptaphyllus aka Tabebuia impetiginosa	pink trumpet tree	moderate	small
Lagerstromia indica	crape myrtle	good	small
Osmanthus fragrans	sweet olive	very good	small
Parkinsonia florida	blue palo verde	very good	small
Albizia julibrissin	mimosa	very good	medium
Bauhinia x blakeana	Hong Kong orchid	moderate	medium
Calodendrum capense	cape chestnut	moderate	medium

Scientific Name	Common Name	Drought Tolerance	Size
Handroanthus chrysotricha aka Tabebeuia pulcherrima)	golden trumpet tree	moderate	medium
Hymenosporum flavum	sweetshade	moderate	medium
Koelreuteria bipinnata	Chinese flame tree	good	medium
Markhamia lutea aka Markhamia hildebrandtii	gold markhamia	good	medium
Metrosideros excelsa	New Zealand Christmas tree	good	medium
Pyrus calleryana ‘ Aristocrat’	callery pear	moderate	medium
Robinia ‘ Purple Robe’	purple robe locust	very good	medium
x Chitalpa tashkentensis	chitalpa	good	medium
Jacaranda mimosifolia	jacaranda	good	med‐large
Tipuana tipu	tipu	very good	med‐large

Recommended Street Right‐of‐way Tree Species

Small Scale Trees (parkways between 2‐ft and 4‐ft wide or larger):
Acacia podalyriifolia	pearl acacia	very good	small (2’‐4′)
Comarostaphylis diversifolia aka Arctostaphylos diversifolia	summer holly	good	small (2’‐4′)
Eriobotrya deflexa	bronze loquat	very good	small (2’‐4′)
Photinia x fraseri	Frasier photinia	good	small (2’‐4′)
Rhaphiolepis indica ‘ Majestic Beauty’	Majestic Beauty ‐ India hawthorn	good	small (2’‐4′)
Agonis flexuosa	peppermint tree	good	small (2’‐4′)
Medium Scale Trees (parkways between 4‐ft and 6‐ft wide or larger):
Arbutus x ‘ Marina’	Marina strawberry tree	moderate	medium 4‐6
Laurus nobilis	Grecian laurel or sweet bay	good	medium 4‐6
Magnolia grandiflora ‘ St. Mary‘	St. Mary’s Magnolia	moderate	medium 4‐6
Olea europaea	fruitless olive ONLY	very good	medium 4‐6
Podocarpus macrophyllus	yew pine	good	medium 4‐6
Tristania laurina	water gum	good	medium 4‐6
Large Scale Trees (parkways between 6‐ft and 10‐ft wide or larger):
Afrocarpus falcatus aka Podocarpus gracilior	fern pine	moderate	large 6‐10
Angophora costata aka Angophora cordifolia	rose gum	very good	large 6‐10
Cupressus forbesii aka Hesperocyparis forbesii	Tecate cypress	very good	large 6‐10
Magnolia grandiflora ‘ Samuel Sommer’	southern magnolia	moderate	large 6‐10
Quercus suber	cork oak	very good	large 6‐10

Ulmus parvifolia ‘True Green’	Chinese elm	good	large 6‐10
Largest Scale Trees (parkways between 10‐ft wide or larger):
Cinnamomum camphora	camphor	good	larger ≤10
Ficus macrocarpa ‘ Green Gem’	Indian laurel fig	good	larger ≤10
Fraxinus udhei	evergreen ash	moderate	larger ≤10
Lophostemon confertus	Brisbane Box	good	larger ≤10
Quercus virginiana	southern live oak	good	larger ≤10

Kate Sessions Recommended Fruit Tree Species

Large = >50 ft, Medium= ≥30 and <50 ft, Small = ≤25 ft (planting space)
Acca sellowiana	pineapple guava	very good	small
Annona cherimola	cherimoya	moderate	medium
Casimiroa edulis	sapote	good	large
Diospyros kaki	persimmon	moderate	medium
Eriobotrya japonica	Japanese loquat	very good	medium
Ficus edulis	fig	very good	variable
Macadamia spp.	macadamia	good	medium
Malpighia emarginata	acerola cherry	good	medium
Malus domestica	apple	moderate	small
Morus nigra	mulberry	very good	small
Psidium guajava	tropical guava	good	medium
Psidium littorale	strawberry/lemon guava	good	small
Punica granatum	pomegranate	very good	small
Ziziphus jujuba	jujube	very good	medium

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